Flirting with a potential middleweight division excursion should he defeat Nate Diaz at the welterweight limit next month at UFC 279, undefeated force, Khamzat Chimaev claims he would fight former heavyweight champion, Brock Lesnar for a sum of $1,000,000 if the UFC wanted to keep him active.
Chimaev, who currently boasts an undefeated 11-0 professional record, improved his undefeated Octagon tenure back in April on the main card of UFC 273, defeating one-time title challenger, Gilbert Burns in a unanimous decision effort over the course of five rounds.
Initially linked with a potential title-eliminator opposite former interim champion, Colby Covington, Chimaev has since been booked to top his first organizational event in the form of a welterweight main event in September against the exiting, Diaz – who is set to depart the UFC after completing his contractual obligations.
Expected to have one eye placed on this weekend’s welterweight title rematch between Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards, Chimaev has previously noted his willingness to fight middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya just in order to remain active should he overcome Diaz at UFC 279.
Khamzat Chimaev urges the UFC to cough up $1,000,00 for him to fight Brock Lesnar
As well as City Kickboxing mainstay, Adesanya, it appears former undisputed heavyweight champion and professional wrestler, Lesnar has once again found his way onto the radar of AllStars trainee, Chimaev, who claimed he would tackle the behemoth should the UFC fancy booking the unlikely bout.
“I actually told my manager, let me fight at 84(kg) (middleweight) as well,” Khamzat Chimaev told The Mac Life during a recent interview. “But he said, let’s wait and focus on 170. Take the belt, and then we’ll go up.”
“I’m ready for everyone, like, when I said I can fight with Brock Lesnar, it’s real,” Khamzat Chimaev explained. “I can fight with him, if they (the UFC) give me $1,000,000, it’s no problem. Let’s fight who they want. Kamaru Usman doesn’t matter.”
Yet to return to professional mixed martial arts since a surprise UFC 200 appearance back in July 2016, Lesnar originally landed a one-sided unanimous decision win over Mark Hunt, however, the result was overturned to an official ‘No Contest’ after Lesnar failed an in-competition USADA drug test.